3:33, #527: Wednesday Wandering Wonderings

As you can tell from the title of this post, my brain's on Rim Planet Mode with where I'm heading; which is not surprising after several days with a head cold, using the requisite drugs, and working a whole FIVE hours this morning after two 2-hour days preceding!! So, let us take off...

This one's from my Facebook Post today: I wonder howcome 'per' ('by means of') + 'severance' ('a breaking off') = 'perseverance' (not even pronounced similarly); which means 'steady persistence in a course of action' instead of something like 'by means of breaking off'...i.e. "I will per severance your arm and beat you with it?!!"

Whilst rambling across Dictionary.com checking out meanings to concoct the above question, I found that 'today's word' on D.com is "bedizen"..."to dress or adorn in gaudy manner." The article goes on to jabber about archaic words and Middle Dutch...Heck, why not just say it was the 18th century way of saying 'bling bling'...a 1997 rapper's way of saying 'bedizened?!' Or would that be too gaudy and decked out?

Speaking of 'decked out'...decks as in 'made of wood' are always outside, so why double up on the phrase to tell people you're bedizened in a bling bling fashion?!! Anybody out there got duct tape to wrap around my head so it doesn't explode...of course, I'd want some that was bedizened with color, not just plain old gray!! ;p
Got that out of my system?

3:32, #526: Brain Fried Day

Today my brain is somewhat fried...which always leads to thoughts needing to be jotted down here for some reason...due to a well established head cold I've got...the first one since 1/6/09, according to my records, so let's have a "Praise the Lord for my generally excellent health!!" Now...

First off...why do we call it a head 'cold' when my face and eyes are so hot? When you 'catch a cold,' who threw it at you in the first place? If you're 'catching a cold,' should you 'drop it like a hot potato?' If you don't, does it automatically 'super-size?'

Why do we continue to spell the definition of swollen butt veins 'hemorrhoid' when its roots find themselves in some Middle English word of 1350-1400?!! Is is just to be a pain in said butt during spelling contests and blog posts?!! ;p Let's have a 'hip, hip, hooray' for Dictionary.com.

Oh, today's word on said D.com is 'neophyte;' which I happen to remember from my 10th grade English vocab days as 'a beginner' or 'new guy to something.' One definition is 'new convert' so I guess somebody convinced for the first time that neo-orthodoxy is right is a neo-ortho-phyte?!! ;p Or would that be somebody new to using Ortho weed and bug killers?

Yclept...now there's a word: 'to call or name'...use this one to skunk your friends in the dictionary game some day...or try my favorite: Yggdrasil...the tree in Norse mythology that connects heaven/earth/underworld.

Well, I think it's time to go sniff some warm salt water to try to open my nasal passages...sounds awful, but it worked when Mom forced me to do it as a kid!! ;p
Got NaClH2O?!!

3:31, #525: Another Milestone Reached

Yesterday I was greatly encouraged. Our Library Circulation Desk Lady told me she actually sent out God Caused the Civil War on Inter-library Loan!! OOORAH!! So, needless to say, Mr. Lists made a note in The One Year Book of Christian History to that effect for March 25th, 2010. A few folks have asked for some parts of the manuscript through email, but I haven't gotten any feedback so far; which might be a mercy, given the controversial material in it!

The accompanying illustration is part of the aftermath of the Battle of Antietam, also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg; which is an interesting phenomenon that Confederate Daniel H. Hill pointed out in some of his writings. His point was that the opposing sides not only couldn't agree on their political points of view, but they couldn't even agree on what to call the battles...and later, the War itself. For instance, the North named battles by the closest natural landmark in several instances...Antietam Creek, Stone's River, and Bull Run Creek, while the South called these same battles Sharpsburg, Murfreesboro, and Manassas. Hill, a devout Christian and Stonewall Jackson's brother in law, pointed out the irony in the names in that the North, an industrial 'nation,' named things rurally while the South, an agrarian 'nation,' named them after cities. Go figger...

Well, I feel like marching to the sound of gunfire and Antietam is the next battle in my series of battles I'm fighting in command of the Union forces, so may your weekend be pleasant wherever you find yourself!!
Got forage for your cavalry's horses?

3:30, #524: Queen Bess Goes Home

Today, back in 1603, Queen Elizabeth I 'crossed over the river to rest under the shade of the trees,' as Stonewall Jackson would have said in his day, to occupy her room in Heaven's Mansion. As a result, King James VI of Scotland became King James I of England and ended up promoting the King James Bible project that is now a part of history.

Good Queen Bess is one of my favorite historical characters, not only as a fellow Christian, but as one of the more colorful personalities I've observed down through the ages. There are tons of books on her life, so I'll leave you to sort through them if you want to read about her, but I'll definitely recommend "Elizabeth R" as a GREAT series to watch as Kate Jackson stars as Elizabeth. Just to substantiate that I know whereof I speak, I've watched the series nine times and feel qualified to pass judgment on it. Oh, and if you want to read what Bess herself wrote, I highly recommend

Elizabeth I: Collected Works by Elizabeth I, Leah S. Marcus, Janel Mueller, and Mary Beth Rose (Paperback - May 1, 2002)

Now it's on to other things....

3:29, #523: St. Patty's Stuff

Here it is the 17th of March again, the end of four years at The Grey Havens, since tomorrow is Four Years To The Day (thank you, Frodo) that we moved into the place. Today when 'everybody's Irish' to quote 'Boondock Saints' and thousands of other sources, I've got Celtic tunes going on my CD player whilst I while away the time here in the basement of the Big House using up some of my vacation time.
St. Patrick is an interesting story in Christian history. My Bob's Digest Version is that he was a Roman Brit taken slave in a Celtic raid, escaped after six years, got saved, and got called to go back and preach the gospel to those who had enslaved him; which he apparently did for over 60 years... good job, Pat me lad!!

Patrick Ronayne Cleburne blessed mother and dad by coming into the world on this day in 1828. He grew up to be Major General (CSA) Cleburne, "The Stonewall Jackson of the West" because of his military skills, a devout Christian who helped foster the revivals in the Army of Tennessee, and who advocated freeing the slaves so they could help fight the evil Yankees, maintaining States rights...one of which was to continue the 'peculiar institution' of slavery.
Can ya figger that?

Oh, I think the snakes-out-o'-Ireland is not for the real crawlers, but symbolizes how he stomped Satan's head as per Psalm 91:13 with all the Celts he was used to convert in one of those smaller comparisons of Gen. 3 where Christ stomps THE Serpent's head after getting His heel bit.
Got exegesis?

3:28, #522: Spring Signs

I sent around a picture I took of the first crocus here at Camp Cornelius yesterday and this morning's activities reminded me of some other 'early signs of Spring' arriving.

This morning I hung out the garden hose I use at the Grey Havens and opened the faucet specifically for use by the masons who are working on the Andreas Fault to fix stuff that was not done right in the first place, so the hose becomes the Second Sign of Spring.

I also saw a male robin outside the kitchen window while I made some Boca Java Kono coffee that now has the name "Tubbo" based on his girth. He joins Ironhead the Redheaded Woodpecker...no relation to Woody as far as I know...and Richelieu the Cardinal.

The fourth sign of spring is the spotting of and attempt to trap the furry tailed pests with good public relations for the first time this year...I suspect Bullwinkle is in cohoots with Rocket J's cousins on this one, but I've been a Conspiracy Theorist for years.

Lastly, Sunday is Spring Ahead On The Clock Day thanks to the 'wisdom' of our national legislators who came up with this wing ding idea last year. All of this is to encourage you that Global Warming as we've known it every year about this time is gradually inching our way.
Got vegetable seeds picked yet for your gardens?

3:27, #521: Things Vinnie Gone Wrong

Ok, here I am all set to wax eloquent on Vinnie Van Gogh on his birthday due to the fact that Any Day in History has him listed as born on March 3, 1853 when in actuality he was born on March 30, 1853...I just checked, he's also listed on the 30th with a quip that he was an 'artist who always lent an ear.' Well, in any event, I actually like some of his more famous paintings. It turns out his dissipation with prostitutes didn't help his already shaky mental condition inherited from his family, so cutting off the lobe of his left ear sort of makes sense, I guess. I wonder if he was known as "My Cousin Vinnie" by any of his relatives. I don't think Joe Pesci would have been willing to sacrifice an earlobe for the role, but I guess Hollywood make up would do the trick these days.

If you have not seen the movie, "My Cousin Vinnie" starring Joe Pesci as a New Yawk Lawyer wannabe, and you don't mind some rough language, it's really quite funny. Try to imagine Vinnie in a Southern town with Fred "Herman Munster" Gwynn as the judge who has No idea what 'yoots' might be in New Yawkese. Well, turns out Vinnie is talking about 'youths' and there is a happy ending to the whole shebang.

Since today is the day when Abraham 'Vinnie' Lincoln signed "An Act for enrolling and calling out the National Forces, and for other purposes' let's all give a big Civil War "HUZZAH!!" for the first Draft Act...which was one year later than that issued by the Confederate States of America who were fighting for States' Rights but realized a strong central government was necessary to fight a war!! WHAT...you didn't know Honest Abe's middle name was Vinnie?
Got twisted history? I DO!!

3:26, #520: March Meanderings

Here it is Aragorn's birthday so we can celebrate Tolkien's idea that 'not all who wander are lost;' which is a good description of my brain on morning! ;)
Today around 5:30am I wondered if March, which is traditionally spoken of as 'coming in like a lion/going out like a lamb' would come in like the Lion of Judah and go out like the Lamb of God. Of course, if we throw Daniel's Kitties in Their Den into the mix, the 'lion' behavior was rather tame, so we'd have to change the adage somehow...something along the lines of 'in like Daniel's tamed lions/out like two rams butting heads over a ewe.' If they were fighting in the proximity of a yew bush would that then become 'butting heads over a yew over a ewe?!!'

The next question I have is why in the name of my Great Aunt Lizzie's hair bun would Tolkien even establish Aragorn's birthday as March 1st, 2931 of the Third Age in one of the Appendices? It also turns out that a bunch of years later 'to the day'...thank you, Frodo...Aragorn set out on his 'errancies' and wanderings. I wonder what the big deal with March 1st was with J.R.R.? I wonder how many other readers of The Ring Trilogy read [pronounced 'reed'] all the appendices and underline them? ;p I wonder about a lot of stuff, but right now it's 7:40am and I actually ought to go see if there are things at Camp Cornelius that I need to do in order to earn money to support the habit of eating dear old Mom started me on early in life...
Got a walking stick of the mind?